Šilutė

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Šilutė

Coat of arms

Šilutė

Location of Šilutė

Coordinates: 55°21′N 21°29′E / 55.35, 21.483

Lithuania Minor

Šilutė district municipality

Elderate

Šilutė elderate

Capital of

Šilutė district municipality
Šilutė elderate

First mentioned

13th

Granted city rights

1941

Population (2001)

- Total

21,476

- Rank

17th

Time zone

EET (UTC+2)

- Summer (DST)

EEST (UTC+3)

Šilutė older used form Šilo karčiama (pronunciation (help·info); German: Heydekrug) is a city in the south of Klaipėda County in Lithuania. Historically in Klaipėda region and part of the ethnographic region Lithuania Minor, Šilutė was the interwar capital of Šilutė County and is currently the capital of Šilutė district municipality.

1 Name
2 History
3 Economy
4 International friendship
5 Famous people
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Name

Šilutė's origin dates to an inn (Krug) catering for travelers and their horses which was located halfway between Memel and Tilsit. The German name of Heydekrug referred to a Krug (an archaic word for inn) in the Heide (heathland). The inn was known in Lithuanian as Šilokarčema.

[edit] History

A famous fish market was opened in Heydekrug almost 500 years ago, when Georg Tallat purchased the inn together with the land and fishing rights in 1511. The town in Prussia was a gathering place for peasants from nearby Samogitia and fishermen from Ruß (Rusnė), Karkeln (Karklė), Nidden (Nida), and Sarckau (Lesnoye). Next to the inn a church of Werden (Verdainė) was built in 1550. Heydekrug often sought city rights, but was opposed by Memel and Tilsit in 1721 and 1725. In 1722 Heydekrug became a district center and in 1818 the capital of Landkreis Heydekrug. The settlement was amalgamated with the villages of Werden (Verdainė), Szibben (Žibai), and Cyntionischken (Cintjoniškiai) in 1910, although it still did not receive city rights. Following World War I and the splitting off of German territory by the Treaty of Versailles, the town became part of Lithuania as Šilutė when that country acquired the Memel Territory (Klaipėda region) in 1923.

Šilutė railway station in the early 20th century

The town was reclaimed by Nazi Germany in 1939 when it reacquired the Memel Territory. In 1941 the town finally received city rights. During World War II, the Stalag Luft VI prisoner-of-war camp was located near Heydekrug; it was the northernmost POW camp within the confines of the German Reich.

There remained many old Heydekrug buildings in Šilutė: an old post office (1905), a fire station (1911), a court building and prison (1848), a bridge across the Šyša (1914), an estate of H. Scheu (1818), an old market square, a harbor, railway station and a bridge (1875), and the Vydūnas gymnasium.

[edit] Economy

The town, which is a region center, has a well-developed infrastructure. There is an amateur theatre, a museum, three churches, a few hotels, and many cafes, restaurants, and bars. There are large industrial enterprises in Šilutė as well: Šilutės Rambynas (1842), producing butter and cheese, is one of the oldest factories in the area; Šilutės Baldai (1890); and Šilutės Durpės (1882) which exports approximately 50,000 m3 of peat. Newly founded enterprises are also prospering: Šilutės Girnos (combined fodder); Žibai; Grabupėliai (meat processing); and EKSA, a subsidiary of the alcohol producer Stumbras. In order to speed up capital investments, the region council has established land tax bonuses for investors.